You review | The Guardianhttps://www.theguardian.com/film/series/youreview
Readers review the latest film releasesen-gbGuardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. 2018Tue, 20 Mar 2018 05:12:51 GMT2018-03-20T05:12:51Zen-gbGuardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. 2018The Guardianhttps://assets.guim.co.uk/images/guardian-logo-rss.c45beb1bafa34b347ac333af2e6fe23f.pnghttps://www.theguardian.com
You review: A Nightmare on Elm Street | Ben Childhttps://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/may/10/you-review-nightmare-elm-street
The critics mostly found Michael Bay's retooling of the 1984 slasher classic more soporific than counting sheep. Do they need a wakeup call?<p>Wes Craven's original 1984 A Nightmare on Elm Street introduced Freddy Krueger, a hideously burned, bloodthirsty spitball of menace who murdered his victims when they succumbed to sleep. Ironically, most of the critics who caught the 2010 remake found themselves struggling to stay awake for very different reasons, with no razor-taloned angel of death to put them out of their misery.</p><p>Complaints range from the sheer predictability of the setup, to the inability of the usually excellent Jackie Earle Haley to get under the skin of the character inhabited for so long by Robert Englund. The new version, from Michael Bay's Platinum Dunes company and overseen by music video director Samuel Bayer, feels like a commercially driven attempt to revive a franchise that's been deader than most of Freddy's victims for a very, very long time. The new film excises the campy one-liners adopted by Englund in later Elm Street sequels, but some suggest they would preferred the odd dodgy pun, if only to add a little cheesy life to the proceedings.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/may/10/you-review-nightmare-elm-street">Continue reading...</a>HorrorMichael BayFilmCultureMon, 10 May 2010 12:03:24 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/may/10/you-review-nightmare-elm-streetPhotograph: Photo Courtesy of New Line Cinema/AP'Bloodless' … A Nightmare on Elm Street. Photograph: APPhotograph: Photo Courtesy of New Line Cinema/AP'Bloodless' … A Nightmare on Elm Street. Photograph: APBen Child2010-05-10T12:03:24ZYou review: Iron Man 2https://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/may/04/iron-man-2-you-review
The critics have quibbles with this sequel's clunky plotting, but none with Robert Downey Jr, who all agree was born to play the role. Have they got it right?<p>If a consensus exists among critics poring over the latest instalment of Jon Favreau's gleaming superhero franchise, it's that Robert Downey Jr is the right man at the right time for Iron Man 2, a movie which, despite its numerous faults, ultimately delivers a highly entertaining sequel to the surprise comic-book hit of 2008. At the age of 45, Downey has become a bona fide star, an irreplaceable, incomparable screen presence who inhabits the character of Tony Stark, genius military industrialist turned a sort of Robocop for the world, with supreme confidence and almost unprecedented verve and gusto.</p><p>There are a few grumbles over Iron Man 2's lack of soul – compared with other superhero flicks such as recent efforts starring Spider-Man and Batman, it is seen as something of a vapid affair – and the odd suggestion of clunky plotting. Yet there's a sense that this is an enjoyable continuation of a surprisingly successful formula, a rare example of a minor comic-book character who has become a major movie icon.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/may/04/iron-man-2-you-review">Continue reading...</a>Robert Downey JrGwyneth PaltrowSamuel L JacksonMickey RourkeScarlett JohanssonAction and adventureScience fiction and fantasyFilmCultureTue, 04 May 2010 11:23:30 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/may/04/iron-man-2-you-reviewPhotograph: PRIrreplaceable and incomparable ... Robert Downey Jr in Iron Man 2.Photograph: PRIrreplaceable and incomparable ... Robert Downey Jr in Iron Man 2.Ben Child2010-05-04T11:23:30ZYou review: Date Nighthttps://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/apr/26/date-night-you-review
Steve Carrell plus Tina Fey should equal a surefire comedy triumph. Yet Shawn Levy's comedy of mistaken identity has failed to seduce all the critics<p>The first movie to unite comedy heavyweights Tina Fey and Steve Carell ought to be something of a delight. And with a supporting cast that includes Mark Wahlberg, James Franco, Mark Ruffalo and Ray Liotta, Date Night has even more going for it on paper. Nevertheless, critical reaction is mixed, with some reviewers praising the naturalistic performances of the two leads and director Shawn Levy's skill in maintaining a realistic tone in the face of some over-the-top set pieces, while others suggest failure on both counts.</p><p>Date Night boasts a premise ripe with comedic potential. Bored New Jerseyites Phil and Claire Foster decide to head into the Big Apple in a bid to pep up their marriage, which long ago fell into a pit of suburban ennui and routine. They arrive at a swanky Manhattan restaurant named Claw here they clearly have no chance of getting a table without a reservation, and Phil decides on the spur of the moment to nab a table belonging to an absent couple called the Tripplehorns, despite the misgivings of his wife.<br><br>Predictably, the unfortunate pair's one attempt to add a little risk into their monotonous existences ends up delivering far more excitement than they could ever have hoped for, as it turns out that the Tripplehorns are being sought by gangsters over a missing flashdrive that contains some salacious images of an important political figure. Soon, the Fosters are spinning all round town in cars that do not belong to them, breaking into offices to secure vital information and semi-blackmailing a perpetually shirtless security expert who Claire once showed some properties (Wahlberg) into helping them work out the best way of escaping the unfortunate mess they've somehow got themselves into.<br> <br>Taking a positive attitude to this one is our own Peter Bradshaw, who suggests that Fey and Carell are not so far from a modern day Katherine Hepburn and Spencer Tracey.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/apr/26/date-night-you-review">Continue reading...</a>FilmCultureSteve CarellTelevisionMon, 26 Apr 2010 14:24:07 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/apr/26/date-night-you-reviewPhotograph: PRMore excitement than hoped for … Date NightPhotograph: PRMore excitement than hoped for … Date NightBen Child2010-04-26T14:24:07ZYou review: The Ghosthttps://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/apr/19/the-ghost-roman-polanski-you-review
Did you find political thriller The Ghost one of Roman Polanski's best films in years? Or do you think it's difficult to separate an appreciation of his work from his chequered personal history?<p>The critics say Roman Polanski's latest is a confident, suspenseful thriller with a touch of Hitchcock. According to some, The Ghost is also the director's best film for a number of years.</p><p>Despite its gentle – some might say ponderous – pace, this politically charged tale of a Blair-like former prime minister and the man brought in to help write his memoirs proves the film-maker's ability to create gripping cinema without succumbing to the action-movie tropes that have infiltrated the thriller genre in recent years. Polanski delivers an air of intrigue as chilling as the wintry Martha's Vineyard estate where much of it is set, and the classy cast, including Ewan McGregor as the ghost writer, Pierce Prosnan as former PM Adam Lang, Olivia Williams as his Cherie Blairesque wife and Sex and the City's Kim Cattrall as his loyal aide and mistress, performs admirably.<br><br>In The Ghost, which won the Silver Bear for best film at Berlin, Lang is under virtual siege from the press for taking the UK to war in Iraq. Matters worsen when he is accused by an international court of handing over terror suspects to the US for torture. Few critics are able to resist making analogies between this situation and that of the film-maker himself: Polanski directed the editing process under house arrest in Switzerland, where he still awaits possible extradition to the US on three-decade-old charges of sexually assaulting a 13-year-old girl. </p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/apr/19/the-ghost-roman-polanski-you-review">Continue reading...</a>FilmRoman PolanskiPierce BrosnanEwan McGregorKim CattrallOlivia WilliamsCultureMon, 19 Apr 2010 13:02:56 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/apr/19/the-ghost-roman-polanski-you-reviewPhotograph: PRMonkeying around … Roman Polanski and Ewan McGregor on the set of The GhostPhotograph: PRMonkeying around … Roman Polanski and Ewan McGregor on the set of The GhostBen Child2010-04-19T13:02:56ZYou review: Whip It | Ben Childhttps://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/apr/12/you-review-whip-it
Did Drew Barrymore's roller derby romp rock your world, or did it just make you want to put on your skates and leave?<p>The critics are largely thrilled by Drew Barrymore's gentle directing debut, an adaptation of Shauna Cross's breezy 2007 novel about a teenager trying to escape her life of small-town ennui by joining a local roller derby league. Whip It stars Juno's Ellen Page as Bliss Cavendar, aka Babe Ruthless, who discovers a talent for zipping round a rollerskating rink populated by badass women with monikers such as Eva Destruction, Bloody Holly and Jabba the Slut.</p><p>Bliss's ability to send opponents flying while staying on her own two skates helps transform a motley crew of likable losers, The Hurl Scouts, into championship contenders, and she's soon enjoying the sort of free-living, hard-partying lifestyle she always dreamed of, even striking up a fledgling relationship with a young wannabe rock star. Unfortunately, her conservative-minded mom, for whom twee and starchy beauty pageants are the perfect activities for a young lady of Bliss's age, knows nothing of her daughter's new-found career. The stage is therefore set for a Bend It Like Beckham/School of Rock-style confrontation when the truth is finally unveiled.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/apr/12/you-review-whip-it">Continue reading...</a>CultureEllen PageComedyFilmDrew BarrymoreMon, 12 Apr 2010 14:03:50 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/apr/12/you-review-whip-itPhotograph: PRRoll on … Kristen Wiig and Ellen Page in Whip ItPhotograph: PRRoll on … Kristen Wiig and Ellen Page in Whip ItBen Child2010-04-12T14:03:50ZYou review: How to Train Your Dragonhttps://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/apr/06/how-to-train-your-dragon
Did this DreamWorks animation send you soaring out of your seat with wonder, or did it just fail to fly?<p>It may not feature the most original of storylines, but the critics reckon DreamWorks Animation's latest 3D feature is a cut above the usual all-CGI fare. A sharp screenplay, sublime visuals and benevolent outlook make for an exceptional family-friendly movie that manages to keep adults happy without adopting the standard reliance on regular Shrek-style pop culture references.</p><p>How to Train Your Dragon is set on the frozen island of Berk, a constant theatre of war fought over by a variety of colourful flying beasties and a cheerfully violent tribe of Vikings. The latter are bizarrely divided into enormous adults with broad Scots accents and a perky but slightly irritating teen variety, who sound like they've just stepped out of a mall in Orange County. None of this matters much, because the two central protagonists on either side – runt-of-the-litter Viking Hiccup (voiced by Jay Baruchel) and youthful dragon Toothless – are engaging enough for viewers to ignore such brainless Hollywoodisms.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/apr/06/how-to-train-your-dragon">Continue reading...</a>FilmCultureAnimationFamilyTue, 06 Apr 2010 15:38:29 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/apr/06/how-to-train-your-dragonPhotograph: PRHigh flyer? … scene from How to Train Your DragonPhotograph: PRHigh flyer? … scene from How to Train Your DragonBen Child2010-04-06T15:38:29ZYou review: The Blind Sidehttps://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/mar/29/the-blind-side-you-review
Did you catch The Blind Side at the weekend? Did Sandra Bullock deserve her Oscar, or is the Academy guilty of rewarding a mushy, sugar-coated slice of sentimentality?<p>It's been praised in the US as a feel good study of human nature at its most transcendent: the tale of a well-heeled southern Christian Republican mom who took in an oversized black teenager from the wrong side of the tracks and helped him turn his life around. Yet on this side of the Atlantic at least, The Blind Side has been roundly pilloried for its patronising TV-movie-esque take on what most critics suspect must have been a far more complex real-life story.</p><p>Michael Oher, the giant bear of a boy at the heart of the film, is now a successful offensive tackle for the Baltimore Ravens NFL side, and Leigh Anne Tuohy, played here by Sandra Bullock, really did adopt him into her sport-mad Memphis family and help him achieve that goal. Yet something about John Lee Hancock's movie feels airbrushed, like a picture postcard version of reality, and nobody can quite believe that Bullock's ballsy yet one-dimensional peformance was worthy of its Oscar.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/mar/29/the-blind-side-you-review">Continue reading...</a>Sandra BullockOscarsFilmCultureOscars 2010Mon, 29 Mar 2010 15:01:41 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/mar/29/the-blind-side-you-reviewPhotograph: PRSandra Bullock's Oscar-winning performance in The Blind Side charmed the critics Stateside, but on this side of the Atlantic the film's reception has been more mixed. Photograph: Sportsphoto Ltd/Allstar/Warner BrosPhotograph: PRSandra Bullock's Oscar-winning performance in The Blind Side charmed the critics Stateside, but on this side of the Atlantic the film's reception has been more mixed. Photograph: Sportsphoto Ltd/Allstar/Warner BrosBen Child2010-03-29T15:01:41ZYou review: I Love You Phillip Morrishttps://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/mar/22/i-love-you-phillip-morris-you-review
Did you find Jim Carrey and Ewan McGregor's relationship believable? Did Carrey do justice to the real-life story of genial grifter Steven Russell or was he the gurning maniac of old?<p>The critics are, for the most part, quietly enamoured of Jim Carrey's flamboyant portrayal of the real-life con man who escaped from jail four times and swindled thousands of dollars, all supposedly in the name of love. Some even suggest that this is the comic's best performance in years, though a minority are concerned that the complex and mercurial nature of <a href=" http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2009/sep/06/steven-russell-elizabeth-day-jim-carrey">the real Steven Russell</a>, a highly intelligent former deputy police officer who has had at least 14 known aliases, is somewhat obscured by Carrey's garish grandstanding.</p><p><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/movie/134846/i-love-you-phillip-morris">I Love You Phillip Morris</a> centres on Russell's journey from happily married Virginian family man and regular churchgoer to the notorious, openly gay prisoner currently serving a 144-year life sentence – most of it in solitary confinement – following his audacious multiple escapes. Along the way, he spends time living what he imagines to be the lifestyle of a gay high roller in Miami, embezzles thousands of dollars from a medical company where he fraudulently secures a job as chief financial officer, and enables the release of himself and lover Morris, a shy and inoffensive southerner played by Ewan McGregor who he met behind bars at the Harris County Jail.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/mar/22/i-love-you-phillip-morris-you-review">Continue reading...</a>FilmJim CarreyEwan McGregorCultureMon, 22 Mar 2010 13:14:23 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/mar/22/i-love-you-phillip-morris-you-reviewPhotograph: PRChaotically doomed ... Ewan McGregor and Jim Carrey in I Love You Phillip MorrisPhotograph: PRChaotically doomed ... Ewan McGregor and Jim Carrey in I Love You Phillip MorrisBen Child2010-03-22T13:14:23ZYou review: Shutter Islandhttps://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/mar/16/shutter-island-scorsese-you-review
Did Martin Scorsese's latest have you wishing for his mighty back catalogue? Or did you enjoy his old-fashioned potboiler for its own sake? And has Leonardo DiCaprio finally grown up?<p>One gets the impression that Martin Scorsese suffers somewhat from the exalted standing of his own back catalogue when it comes to critical notices. Had it been filmed by a newcomer, rather than the familiar, bushy-browed cineaste who shot Taxi Driver, Goodfellas and The Departed, Shutter Island might just have received top notch reviews all round. As it is, this skilfully concocted psychological thriller noir appears to be well received, yet some reviewers seem inclined to peck at its awkward eccentricities.</p><p>That is perhaps understandable. The film has a B-movie sheen, yet runs to two hours 20 minutes and takes itself rather too seriously for an old-fashioned potboiler. It features a plot twist that is signposted repeatedly from the film's first half hour onwards, and its air of mystery and sense of things being not quite what they seem are borrowed unmistakably from Hitchcock. And yet for all this, one gets the impression that most critics rather enjoyed Shutter Island, despite the odd moan about DiCaprio's baby-faced features or the director's over-reliance on genre conventions.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/mar/16/shutter-island-scorsese-you-review">Continue reading...</a>Shutter IslandFilmCultureMartin ScorseseLeonardo DiCaprioAlfred HitchcockTue, 16 Mar 2010 15:52:27 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/mar/16/shutter-island-scorsese-you-reviewPhotograph: PRLook out! Twist coming … Leonardo DiCaprio and Michelle Williams in Shutter IslandPhotograph: PRLook out! Twist coming … Leonardo DiCaprio and Michelle Williams in Shutter IslandBen Child2010-03-16T15:52:27ZYou review: Alice in Wonderland | Ben Childhttps://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/mar/08/tim-burton-helena-bonham-carter
Tim Burton's 3D extravaganza had an even bigger opening weekend than Avatar – but left the critics cold. What did you think of it?<p>Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland may have wowed audiences – <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/filmblog/2010/mar/08/alice-in-wonderland-avatar-wolfman">it opened to a spectacular $210.3m global haul at the weekend</a> – but the critics are divided over whether this latest reimagining of Lewis Carroll's famous stories is a worthy addition to the canon. Some suggest this is Alice seen through a disconcerting Hollywood action movie filter, with weak characterisation and tepid dialogue. Others are bowled over by the vivid imagery and a terrific performance by Helena Bonham Carter as the sinister, sickly sweet Red Queen. Meanwhile, Johnny Depp's performance as the Mad Hatter seems to delight and annoy in equal measure.</p><p>Burton's film sees Alice returning to Wonderland (now known, for some obscure reason, as Underland) as a 19-year-old, having almost forgotten her previous visit as a young girl many years before. Confused and embarrassed after being forced to turn down a marriage proposal in front of hundreds of assembled guests at a garden party, the teenager soon finds herself tumbling down the rabbit hole into an even more frustrating situation. </p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/mar/08/tim-burton-helena-bonham-carter">Continue reading...</a>Tim BurtonHelena Bonham CarterJohnny DeppCultureMon, 08 Mar 2010 16:28:18 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/mar/08/tim-burton-helena-bonham-carterPhotograph: Film FramesHelena Bonham Carter as the Red Queen in Alice in WonderlandPhotograph: Film FramesHelena Bonham Carter as the Red Queen in Alice in WonderlandBen Child2010-03-08T16:28:18ZYou review: From Paris with Lovehttps://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/mar/01/from-paris-with-love
John Travolta and Jonathan Rhys Meyers are rogue CIA agents in Pierre (Taken) Morel's action thriller. The critics have taken no prisoners … how about you?<p>In a former life, Luc Besson was the visionary film-maker who directed Subway, Leon and The Fifth Element. But somewhere along the line, the Frenchman worked out that making the sort of hi-octane Hollywood action movies which Hollywood itself is now almost rather to ashamed to film was not only lucrative, but could be easily achieved with the minimum of effort. These days, all he has to do is come up with a sufficiently barmy screenplay and tap up one of his cohorts to take over the director's chair, and the likes of Liam Neeson and John Travolta are knocking at his door demanding an AK47 and a licence to kill Euro-bad guys. </p><p>From Paris With Love, which stars Travolta as the maverick (read: insane) CIA agent Charlie Wax, is the sort of movie which ought to be impossible to make in the wake of Team America. And yet here are the Yanks once again, blasting France's capital to smithereens in the name of freedom. The difference, of course, is that while Travolta and tenderfoot sidekick Jonathan Rhys Meyers, here channelling Ethan Hawke's wide-eye ingenue from Training Day, are portraying US agents, the entire production team is resolutely Gallic. This is not Hollywood assuming that it is perfectly acceptable for American agents to blow stuff up on foreign soil without fear of retribution or complaint, it is a bunch of canny Frenchmen correctly assuming that no one in middle America is going to stay seated long enough to check the final credits.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/mar/01/from-paris-with-love">Continue reading...</a>FilmJohn TravoltaMon, 01 Mar 2010 16:34:27 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/mar/01/from-paris-with-lovePhotograph: PRRomantic? … From Paris With LovePhotograph: PRRomantic? … From Paris With LoveBen Child2010-03-01T16:34:27ZYou review: Crazy Hearthttps://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/feb/23/crazy-heart-you-review
Jeff Bridges has been heavily tipped for an Oscar for his portrayal of a washed-up country singer in this hokey soap - at least until Colin Firth snatched the Bafta from him on Sunday night. Should he - and the film - still be in with a shot at awards glory?<p>It may yet see him win his first Oscar for a measured, naturalistic turn as washed up country singer "Bad" Blake, despite Colin Firth's victory at the Baftas, and the critics are keen to poor praise on Jeff Bridges for his role in this warm-hearted, if slightly sentimental drama. Not everyone is convinced that Crazy Heart itself is up to Academy Award-winning standard, however. Scott Cooper's movie may just be a little too schmaltzy and dewy eyed for that, but Bridges' illustrious fellow castmembers also acquit themselves well in unshowy roles, and the songs … well the songs are almost worth the ticket price alone.</p><p>Crazy Heart rarely strays too far from the grizzled, permanently booze-addled Blake, who hasn't written a song in three years, and despite a wonderful back catalogue makes his living travelling from dive to smalltown dive, often receiving less for his services than the local backing bands who support him. So tight are the margins in his particular game that his manager often leaves strict instructions that his charge is not to be allowed to run up a bar tab. Around every corner there's a fan who still worships the ground old Bad shuffles over, but it's a straitened, long dark tunnel of a life permeated with episodes of extreme, uncomfortable drunkenness and ill health. Something's gotta give, and the old timer's own particular glimmer of hope comes in the form of a shy young journalist and single mum (Maggie Gyllenhaal) who interviews him one night after a show and falls for his hoary charms. Meanwhile, there's another shard of light in the shape of a successful young country singer (Colin Farrell) who Bad once mentored - if the senior musician can hold back his pride. Finally, Blake is fortunate to have a good friend in Wayne (Robert Duvall), a motherly bar owner who's doing his best to get him off the grog.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/feb/23/crazy-heart-you-review">Continue reading...</a>FilmJeff BridgesMusicTue, 23 Feb 2010 09:11:12 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/feb/23/crazy-heart-you-reviewPhotograph: Fox/Everett/RexJeff Bridges and Robert Duvall in Crazy Heart Photograph: Fox/Everett/RexPhotograph: Fox/Everett/RexJeff Bridges and Robert Duvall in Crazy Heart Photograph: Fox/Everett/RexBen Child2010-02-23T09:11:12ZYou review: Ponyohttps://www.theguardian.com/film/2010/feb/17/ponyo-you-review
The first film in five years from Japanese animation master Hayao Miyazaki has finally been released. But does it soar to the heights of Spirited Away?<p>It would take a brave critic to rip into Hayao Miyazaki, so high is the esteem in which Japan's master of hand-drawn animation is held by western reviewers. One suspects that the premise of his first film in five years, the tale of a fish-girl who desires to become a real human being, might be lampooned as twee and derivative were it to be used by a nascent British or American animator. And indeed, there is much that is sickly sweet and contrived about Ponyo. Yet there is also a quality that is so beguiling and otherworldly that grown men and women are reduced to wide-eyed ankle-biters, bowled over by the spectacular, mysterious and magical images on the big screen.<br><br>Ponyo centres on a sweet-natured five-year-old boy who lives by the sea with his mother, who works in the local old people's home, and his father, a sailor who is often away. One day the child finds a goldfish - though this creature strangely already has the vestigial appearance of a tiny little girl - trapped in a jam jar by the beach. When he cuts himself on the glass, the fish licks him better, an event which we later discover has set her on an inexorable path towards humanity, a channel fixed in place by her adoration for her new companion.</p><p>Yet the love the two share seems to threaten the very fabric of reality, causing the oceans to rise and the moon to fall closer to the earth, all of which severely puts the wind up Ponyo's father, a luridly dressed dandy of a sorceror who really ought to have been voiced by David Bowie, but somehow inexplicably ended up (in the English language dub at least) with the gentle Celtic brogue of Liam Neeson.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2010/feb/17/ponyo-you-review">Continue reading...</a>FilmCultureAnimationHayao MiyazakiSpirited AwayWed, 17 Feb 2010 10:01:31 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/film/2010/feb/17/ponyo-you-reviewPhotograph: PRLost at sea? … PonyoPhotograph: PRLost at sea? … PonyoBen Child2010-02-17T10:01:31ZYou review: Youth in Revolthttps://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/feb/08/youth-in-revolt-cera
Michael Cera's comic turn as a teenage nerd and his suave French alter-ego has convinced the critics he can finally front a film. Do you agree?<p><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Cera">Michael Cera</a> has always been something of a favoured son in critical circles, despite often finding himself in the shadow of more celebrated co-stars when it comes to awards season. And yet there's a sense that the critics were all set to dismiss Nick Twisp, the central character in Miguel Arteta's nicely judged indie comedy, as just another example of the Juno star's penchant for playing too-bright-for-their-own-good geeky nice guys.</p><p>Fortunately for Cera, <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2010/feb/07/youth-in-revolt-review">Youth in Revolt</a> also introduces Twisp's alter-ego, the louche, moustachioed, cigarette-smoking badboy François Dillinger, who allows him to overcome his natural shyness and pursue the girl of his dreams. It's this beautifully recursive twist that allows Cera, who plays both roles, to transcend what was starting to become a rather stale movie persona, while at the same time riffing all over it.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/feb/08/youth-in-revolt-cera">Continue reading...</a>Michael CeraFilmCultureMon, 08 Feb 2010 15:52:58 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/feb/08/youth-in-revolt-ceraPhotograph: Dimension Films/PRMichael Cera as the suave François Dillinger in Miguel Artera's Youth in RevoltPhotograph: Dimension Films/PRMichael Cera as the suave François Dillinger in Miguel Artera's Youth in RevoltBen Child2010-02-08T15:52:58ZYou review: The Princess and the Froghttps://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/feb/01/pixar-walt-disney-company
Disney's lush hand-drawn fairy tale set in jazz-age New Orleans has got some most critics tapping their toes, with a few in the corner shaking their heads. Whose camp are you in?<p>Disney's return to old-fashioned hand drawn animation may take the rare step of pitching an African-American character in the lead, but some critics reckon it's a pretty formulaic concoction. Yet others point out that the film is filled with rich, vibrant characters and ravishing images from the paintbrushes of legendary animation directors Ron Clements and John Musker.</p><p>The Princess and the Frog is a traditional musical romance (only loosely connected to the Grimm Brothers fairy tale The Frog Prince) which recalls a cavalcade of similar Disney offerings stretching all the way back to 1937's Snow White and the Seven Dwarves. This time the "princess" is a lowly waitress, Tiana, working two jobs in 1920s New Orleans in the hope of saving enough money to one day own her own restaurant, a dream her late father never had the cash to realise. And the frog? Well he's a foreign prince of spurious extraction (Naveen of Maldonia), a playboy who's been cut off by his parents and has arrived in the Big Easy in the hope of marrying someone independently wealthy in order to continue living his life of luxury.<br><br>By the time the two first meet, the latter has been transformed into the amphibious creature of the title, and when Tiana kisses him in the hope of returning him to his human form, the usual result is reversed and the two find themselves hopping off into the bayou in the hope of discovering a cure. On the way, they meet a jazz-mad alligator named Louis, and a lovelorn Cajun firefly, Ray, who resembles a tiny, winged version of Bubbles from The Wire. </p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/feb/01/pixar-walt-disney-company">Continue reading...</a>FilmCulturePixarWalt Disney CompanyJohn LasseterMon, 01 Feb 2010 17:40:07 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/feb/01/pixar-walt-disney-companyPhotograph: c.W.Disney/Everett / Rex FeatureFrog or dog? … Tiana and Frog Naveen in The Princess and the Frog. Photograph: c.W.Disney/Everett / Rex FeaturePhotograph: c.W.Disney/Everett / Rex FeatureFrog or dog? … Tiana and Frog Naveen in The Princess and the Frog. Photograph: c.W.Disney/Everett / Rex FeatureBen Child2010-02-01T17:40:07ZYou review: The Book of Elihttps://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/jan/18/the-book-of-eli-hughes-brothers
Did the post-apocalyptic, religiously themed multiplex-filler deliver you into appreciative satisfaction – or leave you doubting your faith in cinema?<p>Along comes the second post-apocalyptic tale to hit UK cinemas in the last month, and the critics have got this one pegged as the poor relation of <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/movie/131971/road">John Hillcoat's The Road</a>, which arrived first and is likely to stand the test of time rather better. Despite some excellent cinematography and a stylish, sepia-toned vision of America in the wake of nuclear devastation, The Book of Eli is hampered by faith-based sermonising and at least two ham-fisted final act twists, which most viewers will have spotted coming a mile off.</p><p>The Hughes brothers, of Menace II Society and From Hell fame, are in charge here, with Denzel Washington as Eli, a powerful desert warrior on a journey to the west coast with a not-so-mysterious tome in his possession. The landscape he must travel through is populated by the dregs of civilisation: a wild, wild west inhabited by cannibals and murderers, who our hero ably dispatches with consummate martial arts expertise. After approaching a makeshift settlement in the hope of finding fresh water, Eli is captured by the avaricious Carnegie (Gary Oldman), the rickety old town's self-appointed leader, who attempts to take the book, which he believes will give him great power.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/jan/18/the-book-of-eli-hughes-brothers">Continue reading...</a>FilmDenzel WashingtonCultureMon, 18 Jan 2010 13:02:28 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/jan/18/the-book-of-eli-hughes-brothersPhotograph: PR'Mad Max with Thought for the Day thrown in' ... Denzel Washington in The Book of EliPhotograph: PR'Mad Max with Thought for the Day thrown in' ... Denzel Washington in The Book of EliBen Child2010-01-18T13:02:28ZYou review: Sex & Drugs & Rock & Rollhttps://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/jan/11/sex-drugs-rock-roll-ian-dury-andy-serkis
Did the Andy Serkis-starring Ian Dury biopic get your toes tapping and heart pumping, or were you just left with a blocked head?<p>The critics have, for the most part at least, been rather dazzled by this unorthodox biopic of Ian Dury, that unlikely lad of the late 70s and early 80s music scene: a pugacious polio survivor whose lyrical dexterity delved the mucky depths of British society for pearls of wisdom. Sex &amp; Drugs &amp; Rock &amp; Roll is a highly theatrical, unsentimental vision of a rambunctious ride through the new wave era, with Andy Serkis wonderfully channelling the late Dury's relentless energy and anarchic spirit, as well as singing all the songs with the original band.</p><p>Yet some - a minority it must be said - argue that the film's overwhelming emphasis on Dury himself, with Serkis present in almost every frame of the movie, has made for a lopsided take which fails to ground this version of the singer in a believable reality. The people in his life, many of whom Dury treats abominably, are shadowy straw dolls upon whom we struggle to read the great man's imprint.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/jan/11/sex-drugs-rock-roll-ian-dury-andy-serkis">Continue reading...</a>FilmCultureIan DuryMusicMon, 11 Jan 2010 15:47:51 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/jan/11/sex-drugs-rock-roll-ian-dury-andy-serkisPhotograph: Sarah Lee/GuardianAndy Serkis playing Ian Dury on the set of Sex &amp;amp; Drugs &amp;amp; Rock &amp;amp; Roll Photograph: Sarah LeePhotograph: Sarah Lee/GuardianAndy Serkis playing Ian Dury on the set of Sex &amp;amp; Drugs &amp;amp; Rock &amp;amp; Roll Photograph: Sarah LeeBen Child2010-01-11T15:47:51ZYou review: Daybreakershttps://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/jan/08/you-review-daybreakers
The new vampire movie Daybreakers has some clever ideas, but the critics felt the Spierig brothers were more concerned with the sequel than the film in hand. What did you think: bloody brilliant or strangely insipid?<p>Just as Danny Boyle reinvented the zombie flick by endowing his dead-eyed killers with the ability to attack at breakneck speed in <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/2002/nov/01/artsfeatures7">28 Days Later</a>, Australia's Spierig brothers have made a bold attempt to transform the vampire flick. Unfortunately for them, Daybreakers arrives in cinemas at a time when movies about undead creatures of the night are two a penny, and the critics reckon this one is a little too clunky to stand out. They are also not overly impressed by the embarrassing final act efforts to secure a sequel.</p><p>The story centres on vampire Edward (sound familiar, R-Pattz fans?), played by the always good value <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000160/">Ethan Hawke</a>, a benevolent bloodsucker who does his best not to feed on humans – though it's somewhat unclear how he manages to get away with this. The date is 2020ish, when a virus has transformed most of the human population into vampires – and these, despite the film's adherence to sci-fi stylings, are traditional vampires: immortal, with pale skin and hearts that do not beat, and they burn up in the sun. For good measure, they also have no reflection, which must make dressing for work kind of tough.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/jan/08/you-review-daybreakers">Continue reading...</a>Science fiction and fantasyFilmCultureFri, 08 Jan 2010 16:34:36 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2010/jan/08/you-review-daybreakersPhotograph: Allstar/LIONSGATE/Sportsphoto Ltd./AllstarGrave new world … Daybreakers. Photograph: Allstar/LionsgatePhotograph: Allstar/LIONSGATE/Sportsphoto Ltd./AllstarGrave new world … Daybreakers. Photograph: Allstar/LionsgateBen Child2010-01-08T16:34:36ZYou review: Sherlock Holmeshttps://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2009/dec/29/you-review-sherlock-holmes
Did Guy Ritchie's retooled, shirtless Sherlock set your pulse racing or did he have you in stitches instead?<p>Guy Ritchie's take on Conan Doyle's classic English sleuth is not without its problems: his protagonist does not quite fit the action hero mould into which the much-maligned film-maker has squeezed him, and those who find Ritchie's more laddish tendencies distasteful may be dismayed by the movie's predilection for extreme violence. Nevertheless, the critics have just about bought Sherlock Holmes as an intermittently entertaining romp through a stylised Victorian London, thanks mainly to a barnstorming performance by Robert Downey Jr in the title role and its Dan Brown-lite storyline.</p><p>This Holmes is up against the villainous Lord Blackwood (Mark Strong), an apparently immortal pseudo-fascist necromancer who plans to lead England on a mission to reconquer America and eventually the world – presumably a heinous plan cooked up to speed the pulses of our translatlantic cousins. At the same time he must face up to the loss of his longtime confidant and aide Dr Watson (a much-praised Jude Law), who is about to marry his amour Mary Morstan (Kelly Reilly). Meanwhile, Holmes's old flame Irene Adler (Rachel McAdams) is also in town and seemingly out to make a fool of our hero.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2009/dec/29/you-review-sherlock-holmes">Continue reading...</a>CultureGuy RitchieRobert Downey JrJude LawTue, 29 Dec 2009 15:42:49 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2009/dec/29/you-review-sherlock-holmesPhotograph: PRThey crack you up … Robert Downey Jr as Holmes and Jude Law as Watson in Sherlock HolmesPhotograph: PRThey crack you up … Robert Downey Jr as Holmes and Jude Law as Watson in Sherlock HolmesBen Child2009-12-29T15:42:49ZYou review: Ninehttps://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2009/dec/21/you-review-nine-daniel-day-lewis
The majority of the critics have awarded Rob Marshall's star-spangled musical a big fat zero. But the award voters don't seem to agree: Daniel Day-Lewis isn't the only cast member to have bagged a nomination. Did it get you toe-tapping? Or hot-footing it out of the cinema?<p>All that glitters is not gold, and while the latest piece of cinema to attempt to siphon off some of the glory of Federico Fellini's 8 1/2 may not be dull, it does represent an excruciatingly embarrassing experience for all involved - and that includes the audience. So say the critics of Rob Marshall's first musical since the Oscar-winning Chicago, a star-spangled ensemble piece featuring the cream of female Hollywood acting talent, with the glittering jewel of Daniel Day-Lewis at its centre.<br><br>Lewis, plays Guido Contini, an Italian film director struggling with creative block and women trouble. The film is based on a Tony award-winning 1982 Broadway musical which in turn took its inspiration from Fellini's 1963 masterpiece. Penélope Cruz is the oh-so-sexy mistress, Marion Cotillard the wronged wife and Nicole Kidman the film star muse. In addition, Sophia Loren plays the ghost of Guido's mother, with Kate Hudson as an American fashion journalist, Fergie from the Black Eyed Peas as a prostitute from his youth and Judi Dench as his costume designer and confidante.</p><p>"The man at the centre of the universe in Nine, the sun around which a bevy of beautiful women will circle, needs to be irresistible, radiating heat," writes <a href="http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/la-et-nine18-2009dec18,0,724445.story">the LA Times' Betsy Sharkey</a>. "Unfortunately, Daniel Day-Lewis is more of a cool blue moon in a distant sky type.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2009/dec/21/you-review-nine-daniel-day-lewis">Continue reading...</a>FilmCultureMusicalsDaniel Day-LewisNicole KidmanPenélope CruzMon, 21 Dec 2009 13:44:21 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2009/dec/21/you-review-nine-daniel-day-lewisPhotograph: PRA big hand? … NinePhotograph: PRA big hand? … NineBen Child2009-12-21T13:44:21Z